3M Beats on Revenue, Matches Expectations on EPS

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

3M (NYS: MMM) reported earnings on Jan. 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), 3M beat expectations on revenues and met expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased and GAAP earnings per share expanded.


Gross margins dropped, operating margins grew, net margins contracted.

Revenue details
 3M reported revenue of $7.39 billion. The 10 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted sales of $7.18 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.2% higher than the prior-year quarter's $7.09 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at $1.41. The 12 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $1.41 per share. GAAP EPS of $1.41 for Q4 were 4.4% higher than the prior-year quarter's $1.35 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 46.0%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 19.5%, 30 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 13.4%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $7.79 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.67.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $31.33 billion. The average EPS estimate is $6.82.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 4,434 members out of 4,583 rating the stock outperform, and 149 members rating it underperform. Among 1,399 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 1,381 give 3M a green thumbs-up, and 18 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on 3M is outperform, with an average price target of $99.12.

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The article 3M Beats on Revenue, Matches Expectations on EPS originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool recommends 3M and recommends the following options:Long Jan 2014 $65 Calls on 3M. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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